CSX to build new intermodal facility

CSX and its transportation and intermodal terminals subsidiaries plan to design and build a new intermodal facility in McKees Rocks and Stowe Township, Pa., near Pittsburgh.

The proposed facility will create transportation saving opportunities by giving western Pennsylvania shippers direct intermodal freight rail access, allowing for the shift of long-haul freight from highway to rail and strengthening the transportation infrastructure serving the region's economy.

"We look forward to deepening our long-standing relationship with the commonwealth of Pennsylvania through our commitment to invest up to $50 million on a facility that will create more economic opportunity for its residents and significantly enhance distribution opportunities for its businesses," said Michael Ward, chairman, president and chief executive officer, CSX.

The proposed site in McKees Rocks would redevelop the former Pittsburgh & Lake Erie Railroad Yard, which operated for more than 100 years. The project will generate approximately 360 jobs during construction. Once operational, the facility will support approximately 40 on-site jobs, 40 drayage jobs and 100 indirect jobs throughout the region as a result of improved transportation access and distribution opportunities for local and regional businesses.

The Pittsburgh Intermodal Facility will utilize CSX's National Gateway project, an $850 million public-private partnership to create a highly efficient and environmentally friendly double-stack cleared rail corridor on the CSX network between the Mid-Atlantic and the Midwest.

CSX expects to complete planning, design, permitting and property acquisition for the approximately 65-70 acre Pittsburgh Intermodal Facility in 2014, with the goal of beginning the two-year construction process in 2015. As part of the design process, CSX will work with local officials to ensure the terminal supports local industrial development already in the planning stage.